Axis History Forum

This is an apolitical forum for discussions on the Axis nations and related topics hosted by the Axis History Factbook in cooperation with Christian Ankerstjerne’s Panzerworld and Christoph Awender's WW2 day by day.
Founded in 1999.

Anyone have any details on why Heinz Ziegler was sacked in 1945? I have read that he had "fallen out of favour" and Tony Le Tissier (in "The Race for the Reichstag") says that Weidling thought he was 'spent'.

23.04.1945 Weidling receives the order from Hitler, the LVI. Panzerkorps along with Ziegler's Division to defend the Reichshauptstadt (Reich capital) moved to Berlin. Obviously, Ziegler deliberately brings Versorgungs- und schwere Kampfteile (supply and heavy combat parts), as well as the Nachrichten-Abteilung (news department), to the western districts of Berlin, which weakens the operational capability and puts him in contrast to Kampfkommandant General Weidling, the combat commander. However, his association is also torn apart by irrational orders from above. His intention is, on the one hand, to call into question the fighting power of the division and, on the other hand, to prepare it for an outbreak from Berlin to the west. In addition, he orders his divisional radio center to go to radio silence (Source: Mathias and Tieke)

25.04.1945 in the morning Ziegler was replaced by Weidling, who had made him the head of the defense section C (Neukölln) during the night, because of the refusal to relocate his battle group “Nordland” in the east of Berlin and attack there. Ziegler, “who looks forward to his replacement” (source: Kuby, in: DER SPIEGEL 22/1965, p. 97), hands over command at the Hasenheide to SS-Brigadeführer Dr. Krukenberg, to which he informs that he used only 70 men in the front line, the remaining troop was too exhausted. Anyway, the two Grenadier regiments were only to be considered weak battalions. Ziegler is placed under house arrest on the order of Weidling in the Reich Chancellery in the command post of combat commandant SS-Brigadeführer Mohnke, but managed by the latter loosely. [Erich Kuby reports in SPIEGEL 21/1965 (pp. 71f.) that Weidling had Ziegler arrested “in order to have him shot because he, in agreement with General Steiner and Himmler, tends to a one-sided capitulation to the Western powers”. Thomas Fischer (Fischer, p. 159), on the other hand, writes that Ziegler fell “in disgrace” because, at a meeting with Hitler, he made the suggestion to relocate all hawsers into the Grunewald and to prepare an outbreak]
28.04.1945 receives despite everything the oak leaves to the Knight's Cross
30.04.1945 after Hitler's suicide (around 3.50 pm) Mohnke rescinds Ziegler's house arrest (Source: Fischer, p. 170)

As I said in my earlier post, large units would have large signals sections; smaller units would naturally have small signals sections.
By 1945 Ziegler's Nachrichten Abteilung might have had just a few signallers and associated technical staff, and like many units at this time seriously undermanned.